Michael Bisping shares his take on the top-five most underrated UFC champions of all time

Michael Bisping believes five fighters stick out as the most underrated champions in UFC history.

The UFC has had a ton of champions with many like Conor McGregor, Ronda Rousey, Brock Lesnar, Jon Jones, and Israel Adesanya hitting the mainstream. However, many haven’t been that popular, and fans often forget they were champions or their skillset wasn’t as respected as it should’ve been. For Bisping, he says Luke Rockhold, Rich Franklin, Frankie Edgar, Rashad Evans, and BJ Penn are the five most underrated UFC champions.

“Luke Rockhold didn’t always get the recognition that I feel that he deserved. Now granted, I didn’t help,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel (h/t MMANews). “Luke Rockhold was good enough to beat anybody on a given night…

“BJ is one of the most beloved, talented fighters of all time. There is a reason why this man is called ‘The Prodigy,’” Bisping added. “Records, as I say, they don’t tell the full story. If you scratch beneath the surface, and you see what BJ Penn was all about, the man was ferocious.”

As Michael Bisping notes, he believes all five didn’t get the respect they deserved but he believes all five were some of the best champions. Franklin, of course, is more known for getting beat by Anderson Silva. Edgar, meanwhile, has since dropped all the way down to bantamweight which is why people forget that he was the UFC’s lightweight champ which only adds to him being underrated for winning a title two weight classes above.

BJ Penn, meanwhile, broke through for Hawaii MMA and was an immediate fan favorite as his fights were exciting. He also had no problem going up in weight but ending his career on a losing skid plays a role in him being an underrated champ, according to Bisping.

Do you agree with Michael Bisping’s list of the five most underrated UFC champions?